Gramática 1

Subject Pronouns - Pronombres del Sujeto
Pronouns are words that take the place of nouns. Subject pronouns take the place of the subject of the sentence.

yo - I	nosotros/as - we
tú - you	vosotros/as - you all (Spain)
Ud. - you (formal) él - he ella - she	Uds. - you all ellos - they (masc./mixed) ellas - they (fem.)

Helpful Hints:
1. If you are talking about yourself, use I (yo) as the pronoun.
2. If you are talking to someone (1 person), use you (tú) as the pronoun. (Note: This is used with peers, family members, and with people with whom you are very familiar.)
3. If you are talking to someone (1 person) you DO NOT know, or is in a position of authority, use you (formal)(usted or Ud.) as the pronoun.
4. If you are talking about someone (1 person), use he (él) or she (ella) as the pronoun.
5. If you are talking about a group of people and you are part of the group, use we (nosotros/as). (Note: nosotros is used with males or mixed company, while nosotras is used with only females)
6. If you are talking to a group of people, as in you all, use ustedes (Uds.).
(Note: If you are in SPAIN, when speaking to groups of friends, you will use vosotros/as. When speaking to groups of strangers or acquaintances, you will use Uds.)
7. If you are talking about a group of people but you are not one of the group, use they (ellos, ellas).
(Note: ellos is used with groups of males or mixed company, while ellas is used with only females)

Práctica:
Choose the proper subject pronoun to use in each situation.
1. talking to a stranger
2. talking about John and Francis
3. talking about your brother
4. talking to a group of friends
5. talking about Julie and Peggy
6. talking to your best friend
7. talking about your sister
8. talking to an elderly couple
9. talking to your teacher
10. talking about yourself
11. talking to your sister
12. talking about yourself and another person

Más Práctica:
Change the italicized element to a pronoun.
1. Teresa es cubana.
2. Los muchachos corren por el parque.
3. Las señoras trabajan en aquella oficina.
4. Tomás es mexicano.
5. El señor González no viene hoy.
6. La señora López está arreglando el viaje.



Ser - to be
The verb ser - to be is used to express an inherent quality or characteristic. Recall the acronym DOTCOP to determine how and when this verb is used.

D - date (Hoy es lunes. - Today is Monday.)
O - occupation (Yo soy profesora de español. - I am a Spanish professor.)
T - time (Son las ocho de la mañana. - It is 8:00 am.)
C - characteristics (Mi hermana es simpática. - My sister is nice.)
O - origin (Nosotros somos de Dakota del Sur. - We are from South Dakota)
P - Physical characteristics (Tú eres muy alto. - You are very tall.)

Conjugations of ser:

soy - I am	somos - we are
eres - you are	sois - you all are (Spain)
es - you are / He/she is	son - you all are / they are

Práctica:
Form sentences from the following:
1. La capital de Venezuela / ser / Caracas.
2. Carlos, Marcos, y tú / ser / estudiantes.
3. Nosotros / ser / profesores.
4. Los perros / ser / animales domésticos.
5. El oro (gold) / ser / un metal precioso.
6. Señor González / ser / ingeniero.
7. Ellos / ser / dentistas.
8. Madrid / ser / la capital de España.
9. Las chicas y yo / ser / buenas amigas.
10. Aquel libro / ser / de Juan y Carlos.
11. Ser / la una y diez de la tarde.
12. Ser / las once y veinte de la noche.
13. Hoy / ser / lunes, el 10 de diciembre.
14. Mañana / ser / martes.
15. Las clases / ser / difíles (hard).